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Isabel and Dulcie
|last_appearance = Sodor: Reading Between the Lines |creator(s) = Rev. W. Awdry |name = Isabel and Dulcie |nicknames = Isobel Auto Coach |gender = Females |country_of_origin = * England * Island of Sodor |relative(s) = Alice and Mirabel |affiliation = * The Little Western ** Oliver ** Toad * North Western Railway ** Donald and Douglas |basis = BR Hawksworth Autocoaches |gauge = |vehicle = Rolling stock |type = Auto coaches |wheels = 8 each |designer(s) = Frederick Hawksworth |builder(s) = Swindon Works |year_built = 1954 |arrived_on_sodor = 1967 |railway = * Great Western Railway * British Railways * North Western Railway |owner(s) = Sir Topham Hatt }} Isabel and Dulcie are Oliver's coaches. Isabel came with Oliver when they escaped from the Other Railway, and Dulcie was later rescued by Sir Topham Hatt and given to Oliver to help run The Little Western. Biography ''The Railway Series'' Isabel worked with Oliver and Toad on a branch line in the West Country. In 1967, the branch line was closed and Oliver's crew plotted an escape to the Island of Sodor . They were nearly caught by diesels several times, and eventually made it to Barrow-in-Furness, where Oliver ran out of coal. Shortly afterwards, Douglas helped the group escape across the bridge to Sodor and stored them at Crovan's Gate; Oliver's crew hid inside Isabel during the journey. Sir Topham Hatt then had the three repaired and repainted in Great Western colours for work on the Arlesburgh Branch Line. The Fat Controller was already making plans to acquire an auto-coach for the purpose of handling passenger traffic on the re-opened Arlesburgh branch. The coach turned out to be Dulcie, and thus the arrival of Isabel, with Oliver, to augment the stock could not have been better timed . The two were joined by Alice and Mirabel shortly after, who were paired with Duck. Personality Oliver says Isabel is very clever, as she always keeps a good look out when he pushes his trains and can't see where he's going, and talks to him with her bell. He finds them to be funny coaches, and believes that they would not know what to do without him. Despite what Oliver thinks, they are very faithful to him and are easily able to see when he's headed for trouble Technical Details Basis Isabel and Dulcie are based on British Railways Hawksworth auto coaches, which were used in push-pull service on branch lines - while designed by Hawksworth for the GWR, they were never built until after British Railways was formed. The auto coaches were efficient because it eliminated the need for the engine to run around to the other end of the train to turn around. 15 examples of this type are preserved. File:IsabelandDulcie'sbasis.jpg|Isabel and Dulcie's basis Livery Isabel and Dulcie are painted in the Great Western's chocolate-brown and cream coach livery. When the former first came to Sodor, she was painted in the British Railways' maroon coach livery with yellow lining. Dulcie was also seen in this livery in the 1985 annual. Appearances Railway Series= ''The Railway Series * 'Enterprising Engines' - Escape and Little Western * 'Oliver the Western Engine' - Resource and Sagacity and Bulgy Companion Volumes * '''1976' - Famous Engines * 1979 - Annual * 1980 - Annual * 1987 - The Island of Sodor: Its People, History and Railways * 1996 - Thomas the Tank Engine: The Complete Collection * 2005 - Sodor: Reading Between the Lines |-|Other Media= Books * 1993 - Colouring Book * 2004 - Oliver * 2011 - The Big Book of Engines and Oliver the Great Western Engine * 2017 - Oliver Annual Stories * 1985 - Oliver Gets the Bird Trivia * Isabel's name is a pun on the fact that there "is a bell" on her. * Isabel's name is misspelled "Is'o'''bel" in the ERTL range. Merchandise * ERTL (''Isabel only; maroon; discontinued) References es:Isabel y Dulcie he:איזבל ודולסי ja:イザベルとダルシー pl:Isabel i Dulcie ru:Исабель и Дулси Category:Rolling stock Category:Coaches Category:North Western Railway Category:The Little Western Category:Standard gauge Category:Awdry-created characters Category:The Railway Series characters Category:Railway Series-only Characters Category:Female characters